Automatic damper-regulator.



Patented Apr. I7.- |900. J. T. LuToN.

AUTOMATIC DAMPER REGULATOR.

(Application led Oct. 10, 1899.)

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N0. 647,723. Patented Apr. I7, |900. J. T. LUTUN. AUTOMATIC DAMPER REGULATOR.

(Application led Qct. 10, 1899.) (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

2. aww z az z J W M ou Z UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN THOMAS LUTON, OF EVANSVILLE, INDIANA.

AUTOMATIC D'AMAPER-REGULATOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 647,723, dated Api-i1 17, 1900. Appnmiolfnedoaober'io,14899. serrano. 733,185. (mman.)

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN THOMAS LUroN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Evansville, in the county of Vanderburg and State of Indiana, have invented a new and useful Automatic Damper-Regulator, ofwhioh the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in au'- tomatio damper-regulators employed in ventilating and heating buildings, houses, and the like, wherein are employed a valved hotair iiue, a valved cold-air line, a thermostat, and devices actuated by said thermostat to move the valve in the hot-'air flue to a closed position and at the same time open the valve in the cold-air flue on an increase of the temperature in the apartment to a certain limit.

One object of this invention is to simplify the construction of the devices which constitute the operative elements of a mechanism of the class above specified with a view to making the parts quite cheap in construction and noiseless in operation, so that the system may be installedv in a building at a comparatively-small cost.

A further object is to provide an improved damper-operating mechanism by which the dampers in the two flues maybe simultaneously and automatically operated by the energy of an electric motor which and its related parts are practically noiseless in service, and with this motor is combined means which break the train of mechanical connections from the motor to the damper-actuating device, so that the motor may continue in service after the dampers shall have been shifted until the motor-circuit is broken.

Y Y tion to close the warm-air iiue -and open the cold-air iiue as the motor is rotated. Fig. 3 is an enlarged view partially in section and partially in elevation and showing the positions of the parts when the hot-air iiue is closed and the cold-air flue is opened.

cold-air flue 14 is arranged parallel to the flue 11, preferably beneath the same, and communication between the two flues is established by means of a port 15, the lat-ter being formed at a point between the branch 12 and the damper in the hot-air flue, whereby cold air from the iiue 14 may How into a part of the flue 11 and be admitted to the room by the branch flue and the register.

A damper 1G is pivoted or hung in the hotair flue at a point contiguous to the port 15, and another` damper 17 is hung at a point to close the port 15 in one position of said damper. The two dampers are connected operatively by a link 17a, which is so arranged as to open thedamper in one flue and ,to close the damper in the other fine, whereby the link serves to simultaneously move the two dampers.

A supporting-beam 1S:L is iixed below the hot-air iiue and spaced from the closed end of the cold-air iiue, said beam carrying a suitable metallic frame 18, which serves tosupport an electric motor 19, as well as the several operative parts which are associated with the motor and the dampers. The armature-shaft 19 of this motor is provided with a cone-pulley 20, the latter adapted to have frictional engagement with a corresponding pulley 23 upon a vertical shaft 21 under some conditions in the adjustment of the latter. Said vertical shaft is revolubly and slidably mounted in suitable bearings 22 of the metallic frame, the cone-pulley 23, carried by the upper end of said shaft, being provided with a facing of some good friction material 24, such as leather, rubber fabric, or any IOO other substance adapted for the purpose. This vertical shaft is mounted in its bearings to rotate vfreely therein and to be capable of a limited sliding motion, so that its cone-pulleyvmay engage frictionally with the pulley on the armature-shaft and motor in Vorder that the vertical vshaft may be driven by the motor for actuating the damper-operatin g devices. The vertical shaft'is furthermore provided with an elongated gear-pinion 25, the

latter adapted to mesh with a series of gearteeth forming Aa rack 27 on a horizontallyslidable bar 26. able openings provided in the metallic frame and in the closed end of the cold-air flue 14, so that one end of this bar extends into the iiue, and a'link 28 has one end thereof pivoted to the inner end of the slidableA bar, the opposite end of said link being pivoted tothe damper 17, so that the slidable bar is operatively connected bythe links 28 17'a to the two pivoted dampers in the hot-air and coldair Iiues. The movement of the vertical shaft 2l in a downward direction under the iniiuence of an impelling-spring 31 is limited or regulated vby an adjustable screw 29, which has a threaded bearing inthe metallic frame with the slidable bar 26, but normally the,

18, so that thefs'crew is in alinement'vertically with `the shaft 21. VThe depressingspring 31 is-sho-Wn as having one end secured firmly to the metallic frame, said spring engaging with the vertical shaft between apair of spaced collars 30, which are fixedl or integral with the shaft, the free end of said de-l pressing-spring being extended beyond l,the

- collars in order that a lifting-shoe 32 may fit beneath said spring. This'lifting-shoe isfast shoe is free from engagement with the -depression-spring, because the slidable baris pulled Vin a backward direction by the employment of f a drop-weight 33. This dropweight is attached to a cable34, which passes lover a suitable gnide-sheave 35, the opposite -end of said cable being secured to a project ing arm of the shoe or to the slidable vbar itself. An electromagnet 36 is supported on and insulated from the metallic frame 18 in any suitable way, said magnet being arranged in alinement with the slidable bar 26. This electromagnet has suitable connections 37, by which it is included in the motor-circuit,

able bar 26, a section of said bar being insulated electrically from the rack-formedportion of the bar and the metallic frame to I serve as an armature Vto the electromagnet.

A of any suitable construction and adapted unv The motor-circuit includes wires 47 andi-i8, whlch lead to the contacts of a thermostat 40,.

der the influence of an excessive rise in-temj perature to close the motor-circuit and under the influence of a drop in temperature to break the motor-circuit.

The drop-weight 33 lnormally draws'the slidable bar 26 in a direction to move the Said bar is guided in suit-y damper 17 to a closed position across the port 15 andthe damper 16 to an open position in the hot-air iiue 11, thuscutting oif the ingress of cold air from one fine and permitting warm air to pass to the room or apartment. In this position of theslidable bar 26 its armature end is withdrawn from the pole-piece of the electromagnet and the lifting-shoe 32 is free from engagement from the depressingspring 31, although I have'shown the parts in their reversed positions by Fig. 1 of the drawings. Said slidablebar and thel parts related thereto occupy the described position when the motor-circuit is open or broken; but when the thermostat is actuated to close the motor-circuit the armature thereof is rotated Vin order to drive the cone-pulleyy 20, which in turn propels the cone-pulley 22 and the shaft 21, whereby the gear 25 is driven to move the bar 26 in a direction toward the motor. The endwise movement of the bar 26'is eected against the action of the drop-weight lto move the dampers to the positions indicated by Fig. 1, thereby opening the damper in the cold-air flue and closing the kdamper in the hot-air flue positively by the energy of the motor. The movement of the slidable bar-toward the motor causes the shoe 32 to engage with and lift the depressing-spring 31, and at the same time the armature of the slidable bar is attracted by the electromagnet, so that the bar willbe held in the positionindicated by Fig. l'by the magnet, which is energized by the motor or the motor-circuit. `During the operation of moving the bar 26 spring and the shaft 21 forthe cone-pulley 23 tobe'free from frictional engagement with the pulley on the armature-shaft, and thus `the valve-actuating devices are permitted to 'be held in their locked positions by thevelectromagnet, while the motor is free to rotate, beca-use its circuit is closed by the thermostat. Gold fair may be supplied to the room until its temperature is lowered suiiciently to actuate the thermostat tobreak the motor-circuit. At the same time the electromagnet is denergized, whereupon the dropweight 33 `moves the slidable bar 26 in an opposite direction, vso'as to close the valve 17 in the coldair iiue and open the valve 16 in the hot-air `flue. The motor-circuit being broken, the rotation of the armature is arrested and the spring 3l. lowers the verticalshaftand its cone-pulley to restore the parts to the position for operation.

It will be noted that I have provided a valve-actuating mechanism which is exceedingly simple in construction and which is IOO in the direction indicated' the shoe lifts the IIO IZO

lpractically noiseless in operation, so'that the simple in construction enables the apparatus to be manufactured at a minimum of cost and to be installed in a building Without involving any considerable outlay of money. The apparatus is efficient in operation and requires practically no attention to keep the parts in Working condition.

Changes may be made in the form and proportion of some of the parts While their essentiaLfeatures are retained and the spirit of the invention embodied. Hence I do not desire to be limited to the precise form of all the parts as shown, reserving the right to vary therefrom. Y

Although I have shown and described my valve-controlling mechanism in connection with pivoted dampers and the iiues of a ventilating system, it is evident that the valvecontrolling mechanism embodying the essential features of my invention may be used in connection with other types of valves than the dampers herein disclosed, and, furthermore, that said valve-controlling mechanism may be used to control the valves or dampers in dierent styles of flues adap-ted for the purpose either of Ventilating a room or for Warming the same.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim is- 1. In an automatic damper-regulator, the combination With a valved hotair fine, a valved cold-air iiue, and a motor included in a normally-open motor-circuit having a thermostat, of a slidable bar connected operatively With said valves in the dues, an electromagnet arranged to hold the slidable bar in one position, a shaft geared to said slidable bar and adapted to be propelled from the motor through suitable gearing, and means actuated by the bar to disconnect said shaft from the motor-shaft, substantially as described.

2. In an automatic damper-regulator, the

combination with a valved hot-air iiue, ak

valved cold-air flue, and an open motor-circuit including a thermostat and an electric motor, of a slidable bar connected operatively with said valves, a vertically-slidable shaft geared to the slidable bar, means between the motor-shaft and the vertically-slidable shaft to rotate the latter, a retractor tending to move the slidable shaft into gear with the.

motor-shaft, a lifting-shoe carried by the slidable bar and adapted to lift the slidable shaft against the action of its retractor, and means for holding the slidable bar in place when the shoe is in operative relation to the slidable shaft, substantially as described.

3. In an automatic damper-regulator, the combination With a hot-air iiue, a cold-air flue, and an open electric circuit including a thermostat and an electric motor, of dampers pivoted respectively inthe hot-air and cold= air fines and linked together for simultaneous operation, a slidable bar having one end thereof linked to one of the dampers, a dropweight connected with said slidable bar, an electromagnet included in circuit With the mot-or and in operative relation to the slidable bar, a vertically-slidable shaft geared to the slidable bar and having frictional gear; ing with the motor-shaft, a spring to move the slidable shaft in one direction, and a shoe carried by the slidable bar and adapted to move the slidable shaft in the opposite di rec.

tion, substantially as described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

i JOHN THOMAS LUTON.

W'itnesses:

MICHAL ZARHERES, HERMAN HEITMAN. 

